Dine Out: Food satisfying, but 'diner' suffers from identity crisis

The Route 6 Diner in Dartmouth isn't really a diner, but once you get past that somewhat puzzling fact you're in for a good experience.

Jonathan Comey

The Route 6 Diner in Dartmouth isn't really a diner, but once you get past that somewhat puzzling fact you're in for a good experience.

On the site of the former Healthy Grille, the restaurant had its grand opening in January and bills itself as "Not Your Typical Diner!"

That it isn't — this particular diner has a full breakfast menu, a full lunch AND dinner menu, a full bar, homemade desserts and a line of specialty shakes.

Think of it as an upscale version of IHOP, but with alcohol and higher prices. I don't know if it's all going to work (maybe I've been watching too much "Restaurant Impossible"), but it did make for an interesting and good visit that I found myself wanting to repeat.

I met up with our newest Dine Out reviewer, Dan Medeiros of The Herald News in Fall River, for a noon sitdown at the Route 6 Diner. Dan and I had exchanged emails but never met, and we hit it off nicely as we talked about our families, wives, kids, newspapers, writing and miscellany in a lunch that stretched comfortably past an hour.

It occurred to me later that I had never, in my entire life, met a stranger for a sitdown meal — essentially, this was my first "blind date." Take that, Match.com!

There are two main rooms in the Route 6 Diner — the one you walk into, which looks more like a traditional diner, although the "counter" is actually a real bar, and a larger dining room with attractive lighting and comfortable booths. Hits from the 1950s and 1960s played in the background, and it was a very nice setting to enjoy a leisurely meal, which we did.

Our server thought we were waiting for a third person to join us, which explained a five-minute gap in initial service despite a mostly empty restaurant. Dan sipped his coffee ($2, free refills) and I my water until the confusion was cleared up, and she read us a list of specials — one of which I pounced on, a cup of kale soup ($3.99/$4.99).

I almost never pass on kale soup when it's offered, but Dan and I reached our first stumbling block when he admitted that he "hates" kale soup.

"You hate kale soup?" I asked. Red flag! Where is this relationship going?

But he had an explanation; growing up in a Portuguese family, he was constantly being fed by relatives, even when he wasn't hungry, and more often than not, it was kale soup he had to try to swallow with a smile.

Dan's conflicted childhood memories didn't slow me down any when the soup arrived — it was my idea of the perfect kale soup, with a just-right broth, little carrot bits, kale and nice tender pieces of beef. I'm not a fan of beans in my kale soup, and it was blissfully beanless as well (there was no chourico, either, but I didn't miss it). My only regret was not getting a bowl.

Other starters included the chicken quesadilla, coconut shrimp and chili or chicken nachos ($9.99), or clam chowder ($4.29/$5.99). A mixed field green salad was $5.99.

Dan volunteered to tackle the breakfast end of things (served all day) while I chose from the lunch/dinner fare.

The breakfast menu is more or less standard, with exceptions like the crow's nest ($9.99), stuffed peanut butter and chocolate french toast ($8.99) and vegetable frittata ($10.99), all served with home fries. Dan decided to play it straight, however, opting for the classic American breakfast ($7.39), with sausage. It also came with toast and home fries — plenty of food for any sane being — but he added a pair of chocolate chip pancakes at my prodding, for the sake of journalism.

I had a much larger list of options to deal with, from cajun chicken and shrimp jambalaya ($15.99) to a corned beef reuben ($9.99) to the "Mile High" turkey dinner ($14.49) and shepherd's pie ($12.99). Most of the great American entrees were on the list: Route 6 Diner gets an A+ in my book for the dishes it offers.

In the end, though, I went for a special — the meatloaf sandwich on Texas toast with french fries ($8.99). Even though our company picks up the tab for our Dine Out meals, the reasonable price was a selling point — plus, the words "Texas toast" just hold some type of magical sway over me.

When my plate arrived, I was hardly disappointed, although it was the ultimate carbo load, with two big pieces of the toast around beautiful homemade mashed potatoes, a nice piece of Black Angus meatloaf and gravy to go with a side of crisp fries. It worked better with the top piece of toast discarded and eaten open-faced, and in the end I probably would have been happier with just the regular meatloaf plate ($13.99).

Dan's breakfast was as hearty as advertised, although he found the eggs a bit too runny — we had discussed earlier in our kale soup debate that he just wasn't a fan of wet foods.

"You don't like wet foods?" I asked. Hmm. Can I really be in a longterm relationship with someone who requires their food dry? Ah, why not. He can change. I can change, hell, maybe we can all change.

Dan and I did agree that scrambled eggs at restaurants — or anywhere — were never really that great, and that perhaps they were better enjoyed at home. The sausages were big and plump, a cut above your normal small link, and the home fries were "pleasantly spicy" according to Dan. The chocolate chip pancakes were good (although they were $4.99 for two, pretty pricey as an "add-on" to the normal meal.

All in all, it was an enjoyable meal, and after giving Dan the sheet of easy review tips food maven Joanna Weeks had put together (Dine Out for Dummies?), we parted ways with a handshake and a smile. Solid date. Four stars out of five.

I promised my friend Jonathan Darling back at the office I'd bring him home a burger to review/devour while working, and chose the "breakfast burger" ($11.99), a burger served with homemade corned beef hash and an egg on top. He thought it was a cool idea, but in the end didn't think it really worked and ate it deconstructed — hash and egg on the side, burger and fries later.

Excluding the burger, the meal for two came to $29.84 before tip — which is certainly more than you'd expect to pay at a traditional diner for a similar experience, but not out of line with a "normal" restaurant.

It'll be interesting to see how the Route 6 Diner evolves down the road, whether it will narrow its focus or keep it broad, but as long as the quality remains high, diners will be happy to find out.

Dine Out's reviewer visits restaurants unannounced and at his or her discretion. The Standard-Times pays for the meals reviewed. The reviews merely reflect one diner's experience. Ratings range from 1 to 5 stars.